Chapter 505
The dense fog wrapped around the land, limiting visibility to just a few inches ahead. In the midst of this, a mannequin wandered alone, lost in the mist.
Huff… huff…
Breathing heavily, the mannequin instinctively gasped for air. It had long shed its human form, yet the habit of breathing in fear, an instinct from its human days, resurfaced. The overwhelming fear brought this reflex back.
The fog continued to thicken, making it harder to distinguish even vague silhouettes. With every step, cold moisture clung to its body. Dew began to form on the mannequin’s cold surface.
Ahhh!
A scream suddenly pierced the air, causing the mannequin to flinch.
The source of the sound was impossible to pinpoint. The fog seemed to distort the sound, making it come from one direction one moment and another the next.
Creek. Creek.
The sound that followed was even more horrifying—a crashing noise, as if something was violently shattered. The mannequin knew exactly what it was. It was the sound of its fellow mannequins being torn apart.
How many times had it heard this by now?
At first, it was just an ordinary sound of destruction. But now it was different. It understood all too well what it meant. Someone—no, something—was hunting its comrades one by one.
A faint shadow passed by in the fog. Instinctively, the mannequin curled in on itself. Its plaster body trembled slightly.
Had it ever felt this kind of fear when it was human?
Trying to search through the distant memories, it realized that it had never felt such clear and unmistakable terror. In the past, when facing danger, there had always been a place to run, a place to hide. But now, there was nowhere to go.
The fog wasn’t just obscuring its sight; it was a maze, trapping it inside. Once you entered, there was no escape.
Endlessly wandering, it would eventually become prey to something lurking within.
Once again, the sound of something shattering echoed through the fog. This time, it was much closer.
Instinctively, the mannequin began to run. Its stiff plaster legs moved quickly, pushing through the mist.
Candy… I must find the candy.
That thought consumed the mannequin’s mind. Every time it began to lose consciousness, the words it first saw when it opened its eyes appeared in its thoughts.
The words, written beautifully in droplets, seemed to heighten the cruelty of the message.
<Only those who possess the candy will survive.>
How much time had passed?
The fog continued to thicken, and the screams in the distance grew fainter. This meant that its comrades were disappearing one by one.
At first, the plaza had been filled with mannequins, but now, it seemed there were fewer than half remaining.
If only I had found the candy alone sooner…!
Regret surged within it.
When this survival game had begun, it had thought cooperating with the other mannequins would make it easier to find the candy. But that had been a mistake.
The wicked mannequins couldn’t trust each other. Some had even ambushed their comrades who had found the candy, taking it for themselves.
How long had it been running through this fog?
The mannequin’s eyes finally caught sight of a faint light shining through the fog. It flickered gently, like a beacon of hope. This light, the mannequin was sure, came from the candy it had been desperately seeking.
Having seen the candy in the hands of other mannequins several times, it was certain.
Finally… finally found it!
The mannequin’s steps quickened.
Pushing through the mist, it ran desperately toward the light. Its plaster body was slippery from the dew, but it fought to keep its footing.
If it could just reach that light, it could escape this horrific survival game.
Finally, its hand touched the glowing object.
Eh?
The touch was different from what it had expected. It had thought the candy would be hard, but instead, it felt soft and squishy, like marshmallow.
And in that instant, a chilling laugh echoed through the fog.
Kyuhihihihi.
The object the mannequin was holding was not the candy, but the massive antenna of a guardian.
As the fog parted slightly, the figure of the guardian appeared. The mannequin didn’t even have time to scream before it was pulled into the guardian’s huge mouth.
Once again, a mannequin disappeared without finding the candy.
The Mini Reapers watched from a platform high above, observing the chaos below.
A survival game was unfolding in the plaza below, where mannequins were fighting desperately to survive.
The mannequins, dressed in comfortable sportswear, were carrying out the survival game’s missions.
The first mission was to find the candy and then protect it.
This survival game had started with the Orange Crown Reaper’s idea.
“Those who torment with games will be punished by games!”
The wicked mannequins had tormented humans with all kinds of tricks and traps, and now the Orange Crown Reaper’s proposal was that they should reap what they had sown.
“No!”
“It’s better to kill them quickly!”
The Golden Reapers shook their cheeks, disagreeing with the idea, but with the fierce support of the Black Reapers, a vote was held, leading to an unusual event where all the Orange Crown Reapers participated, and the proposal passed by a margin of five votes.
“Heh…”
Perhaps because of this, the Golden Reapers were sitting gloomily, nibbling on cookies, while watching the mannequins.
Of course, even this wasn’t easy for the Golden Reapers to watch.
“Aah!”
While watching the mannequins, the Golden Reapers frequently covered their eyes, as if they couldn’t bear to see the terrible actions unfolding.
The reason was simple.
The mannequins were too wicked. Breaking promises was a given, and senior mannequins would set traps for juniors, or repay kindness with cruelty—things the Golden Reapers could never have imagined.
Since this was an officially passed proposal in the Golden Reapers’ conference, various members of the garden participated in this survival game.
The Blue Idol Reaper sent out energy waves to help with the game’s progress.
The White Reaper crushed the eliminated mannequins and created a frightening atmosphere.
The Orange Crown Reaper and the Orange Reapers took center stage and directly managed the game.
The Yellow Reaper, who had made the mannequins’ outfits, contributed to the game by creating their costumes.
The Abyss Reaper infiltrated the mannequins, wearing a mannequin costume.
The Purple Reaper created dark shadows in the plaza to enhance the atmosphere.
And lastly, the Pudding Reaper bounced around, cheering for the Abyss Reapers.
Other Mini Reapers participated, making it nearly all of them, except for the Golden Reapers who were only observing.
“Hug!”
Around the gloomy Golden Reapers, the Hug Reaper was going around, giving them all big hugs.
The thick fog began to clear.
The mannequin, tightly clutching the candy, hugged it even closer.
As the fog lifted, the scenery around it became clearer, and with it, the horrific reality unfolded before its eyes.
When the mannequins first gathered in the plaza, hundreds of them had filled the space.
But now, fewer than half remained.
To survive, they had betrayed each other, dug traps, and tried to steal the candy. But now, most of them were gone.
As heavy silence weighed down on the plaza, a giant guardian suddenly appeared.
Following it, small bookshelves began to emerge on the platform.
These were the bookshelves of the magic books that had kidnapped the mannequins from the amusement park.
“What do you want from us to do such things?!”
One mannequin yelled angrily.
Encouraged by its shout, other mannequins began raising their voices in protest.
But their protests didn’t last long.
The giant guardian, who had been watching them, roared, sending white flames rising from its body.
Kyooahh!
The white flames, burning the magic books, were something any mannequin would fear.
At the sight of those flames, the protesting mannequins immediately fell silent.
In an instant, the plaza was again engulfed in silence.
Then, the Magic Book wearing a crown stepped forward and raised its hand.
The next moment, blue droplets appeared in the sky, forming letters.
<Only mannequins who succeed in the final game will survive.>
Reading the message, the mannequins’ expressions changed.
The despair in their eyes was replaced by a glimmer of hope.
Their previously despondent faces shifted in an instant.
The possibility of survival became the strongest motivation for them to endure this brutal survival game.
Tightening their grip on the candy, the mannequins thought:
Having given up their humanity to become magic books, they couldn’t afford to give up now.
Whatever the final game was, they had to survive.
